volume 33

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Industry News Scope Creep Relief Here is Addendum Language shared by appraiser Laurie Richards. MODIFICATIONS TO A SUBMITTED ORIGINAL REPORT: The client or lender must submit in writing (e-mail is preferred) any request for additional information or modification to the appraiser. This information will be retained in the appraiser’s workfile. The appraiser recognizes that…
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Readers Respond Interview: Appraiser Who Brought Down Countrywide Thank you, Mr. Lagow, for having the courage to speak up to help society. Your efforts were NOT in vain. Although mortgage work is tempting and easy at times, these type of situations force us (appraisers) to look at who we are and what is important.…
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Like being in the middle of a paintball free-for-all, messy things are coming at appraisers from all sides these days. In addition to lenders trying to pin buybacks on the backs of appraisers (while seeming to ignore the wild-west underwriting practices that floated the bubble), State Boards also are bringing complaints against appraisers in…
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Editor’s Note: At OREP, we see that incorrect measurements are the cause of many E&O claims. Here are some tips on staying out of trouble. How to Report Building Areas Accurately (and avoid measurement mistakes) by Mark S. Langhamer As appraisers and review appraisers, some of us have seen fellow appraisers relying on building area…
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When was the last time you indicated a functional obsolescence in the cost approach? Did you also reflect it in the sales comparison approach? Would you? Should you? These are questions we rarely, if ever, consider. Perhaps we even avoid the issue when we think the house we are appraising has functional…
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Editor’s Note: One appraiser with considerable experience as an “ordering agent” for lenders- a kind of AMC, has practical advice for fellow appraisers on the effective use the “conditional decline” to get more high-paying orders.
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Editor’s Note: What seems to bother appraisers most these days, even more than low fees, are what they consider to be "unnecessary" challenges to their reports by AMC staff who, in many instances, appear to be less than qualified.
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Editor’s Note: Most homeowners take smoke and Carbon Monoxide (CO) alarms for granted but they are important pieces of safety equipment that we as real estate professionals need to be aware of.
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Lagow was an appraisal manager and assistant vice president at Landsafe, Inc., the appraisal subsidiary of Countrywide, a position which gave him an inside look at the practices which caused the downfall of the largest mortgage lender in America. For his part, Lagow sees Countrywide as being at the heart of both the housing bubble…
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